"1. Our military is supposed to be a means to an end: national security. Due to its immense size and colossal budget, has our military not become an end as well as a means?2. In World War II, Americans could explain “Why We Fight” in part because the government provided a clear and compelling rationale for war. Why are the goals of today’s wars so opaque to most Americans?3. If our military provides us with our way of “nation building” abroad, won’t countries and peoples be more likely to copy our military ways and weaponry than our democratic teachings? 4. America is facing painful budgetary belt tightening. Why is the military immune?5. Why does “support our troops” seemingly end when they leave the service, leading us to tolerate such inequities as an unemployment rate of 21% for young veterans?"

Quote by:

William J. AstoreRetired lieutenant colonel U.S. Air Force, professor of history at the Pennsylvania College of Technology

Source:

“The Pentagon Church Militant and Us: The Top Five Questions We Should Ask the Pentagon,” TomDispatch, March 18, 2010
http://www.tomdispatch.com/blog/175219/tomgram%3A_william_astore,_you_have_no_say_about_your_military